Chemical peels are specifically good for improving acne, evening out your skin's texture, and minimizing the look of fine lines. But the treatment does leave you red-faced, followed by the ew-but-cool shedding of your skin for the next few days. But at last you emerge with the most gorgeous facial skin. A small sacrifice for a glowing complexion, if you ask me.

However during the shedding stage, which I had never experienced before, I was kind of at a loss for how to deal with bits of skin randomly peeling off midday, so I enlisted some help.

Gervaise Gerstner, M.D., a cosmetic dermatologist in NYC told me to, "take a dry washcloth and buff the skin while dry." Apparently using a physical exfoliator or a skin-cleansing device is too harsh to slough away the dead skin cells.

Then, to properly hydrate my face after buffing away the dead skin cells, Gerstner recommends mixing a tiny dot of Aquaphor into your nightly cream to calm any chaffing. If you're prone to acne though, she suggests skipping the Aquaphor and simply applying your daily moisturizer six times a day to avoid further clogging of the pores.

I loved her tip about using a dry washcloth on a dry face, especially since it doesn't leave your skin super red. It's now my go-to way to exfoliate. Plus, if you're not getting a chemical peel anytime soon, but accidentally get a sunburn this summer (remember to slather on SPF!), it's a good way to slough off dead skin gently.